New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Hi all

David and Tina from Northamptonshire desperately wanting to emigrate to NZ......David's brother emigrated to Whangarei NZ a few years ago and we would love to follow in their footsteps.

We would be grateful if anyone could let us know if they used an immigration consultant....and if so...... how effective this was and any advice on a good one to use??

Many thanks

Tina

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Unless you have some unusual circumstances I'd suggest you save your money and do it yourself. The forms are not really that difficult.

Oh yeah, welcome to the site. If you have any questions, put them out here and someone is likely to give you a helpful answer.

Good luck.

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Can't help with immigration info but wanted to welcome you to the site.

Sue

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Hi Dave and Tina.

Lovely to meet you and welcome to this board.

We emigrated to a village outside of Nelson South Island 3 years ago.We did our own forms to emigrate to NZ. Came out on a work visa and then applied to be permanent residents once we arrived in NZ.
We did come out on a reccy to find jobs & choose an area but my husband was also offered a couple of jobs via a phone interview only. He's a plumber so he's good for something I suppose.;)

I would tend to echo HappyNZ and say that you shouldn't need to pay an immigration consultant unless you know your circumstances are a little unusual. Having said that some people simply hate forms :p

There are a few folk on the board who have used consultants and I'm sure they'll let you know their verdicts on the service.

After having a look around this forum, you may feel you can DIY like so many of us have. We are all here to help and support.

What do you both do to earn a crust ?

Have a go at the POINTS INDICATOR if you haven't already done so. How many do you have?

Are you looking to go to Whangarei or will anywhere in NZ do for starters.:)

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

hi dave and tina

welcome to the site, we were going to use an agency and got all the info from them but when we found out how much they were going to charge, we decided to do it direct with NZIS. like happnz said the forms are easy to fill in, if not just a bit time consuming. and there is always someone on here who has loads of useful information and be able to answer your questions.

good luck with your application

with regards

kirstie

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

A big hello from Wellington! Welcome to the site.

We'd agree with those who have said take the DIY route. It's relatively straightforward. If you meet the criteria and can then get all documentation in place, then there's no need to spend your money having a third party do it for you. The NZIS applaud those who compile their portfolio of documents, reports and evidence in a foolproof and organised manner.

Good luck,

Richard & Lynda
(ex-Silverstone & Weedon, Northants!) :thumbup:

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Another big hello from Wellington.
I did it all myself. "Donna F" used an agent it cost her £3,000 & she still had to gather all her own info. Once you've got your police checks & medicals sorted, it's just putting pen to paper.
Good luck, £3,000 will go a long way here.

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Hi, we used an agent to start off with cos we were naive and hadn't really found any of the moving to NZ forums at that stage. We ended up paying the guy £600 for very little, like a previous poster has said, you and your family still have to gather all the information, which you then pass on to them and they fill the form in!! I would try and do it yourself if I were you, unless of course you have very unusual circumstances that agents may be better placed to advise on. We ended up going over to NZ on visitors visas so that hubby stood a better chance of getting a job offer (which he had within a few weeks of being there) so we could then get a work visa, and then apply for PR. Obviously the fact that we have now come back to Uk is another story!!:D

Good luck with it all, and do use these forums for advice and guidance, they are a really superb source of information.

Maggie

Re: New to the site and to forums!!! + Immigration categories
 

We are unsure where we sit with immigration......as David is a HR manager..I am from a personnel background, although I have been made redundant so I have completed my first year of a psychology degree at the Open University.....qualifying for a certificate in social science which is recognized as a basic qualification awarding 50 points.........so in order to make around 140 - 145 points.....David would need to secure a job.....but HR is not on the skills shortage list. So we are unsure what category we sit in??????

Another problem is the 'catch 22' with the Visa / Job offer conundrum. as David has a good job here and we have two children aged 7 and 5, preferably we would prefer to secure a job offer before he hands in his notice.....but without a visa Companies have been a bit reluctant ........we have a few more applications with Companies in Northland - Whangarei and Hamilton area....so we shall see....but very frustrating

Any tips and advice would be very much appreciated.....by the way what a friendly bunch you are!!!!!! I was a bit worried I would have no replies....billy no mates!!:thumbup:

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Can you believe my 7 year old daughter has just informed me I am using the forum wrong..........(first time user)....so apologies I didn't post it by quote, please see message on a reply to thread!!!!God I feel old!!!! :rofl:

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

Hi Tina and David

Welcome! We started to use an immigration agent for a Long Term Business Visa but we've now had to put our application on hold. We got some of our money back but I agree with the others if your application is likely to be straightforward don't bother with one - we spent a lot of time collating information ourselves and having to keep prompting them to reply to our emails - there was very little guidance. We've received more info from people on this site!

Keep your hard earned cash to yourself and good luck with everything.

Helen & Robin

Re: New to the site and to forums!!!
 

so its fairly straight forward ?what paperwork would i need to take with me ?and what must i not forget i like things simple you see thats why a consultent seemed an easy option but obviously i dont want t be ripped off
jennifer